Category: Blogposts

Posts not connected to a comic… sometimes information, sometimes just ranting, it’s a bit of a gamble when you read these.

What the Holidaze mean to me…

Posted on December 24, 2012 by Bruce

I was born a spoiled rotten brat, so this time year has always meant one thing- presents. The more the merrier. I remember when the gift getting lasted two days and by the time it was all over every square foot of the house was covered in boxes and torn wrapping paper. Sadly, if you we’re ask me about anything I received during these years of gluttony I would be hard pressed to tell you. Although the gas powered go-kart in third grade and the bootleg copy of Star Wars in 1977 were unforgettable, in 47 years of Christmases only two gift highlights -yup! I was, and probably still am, a brat.

Something has changed in the past few years which has caused Christmas to end up being a completely different holiday. Not just with my expectations, but also with the stress of gift giving (I may be a brat, but I still gave gifts). When I grew old enough to realize that there was getting gifts, but you also had to give something it became a bit stressful. You see my family is all over the place, and we are very “close” by close I mean we talk to each other maybe once a year. Facebook has been wonderful in that I can actually know what is happening with my family without having to actually communicate with them. This means that when purchasing gifts, I have no idea what the other person wants, or needs. You settle for a gift card only to find out later that they never used it (a depressingly neat little trick). So something happened a few years ago with Sue’s family – the no gifts rule. This may sound like madness and so it is, but it has caused me to really like Christmas, and not for what was wrapped under the Christmas Tree.

What happened (as I remember it) was when the invitation came out in the Fall for the holiday- the logical statement was made that “if we want a sweater, if we need a sweater, we all have the ability to buy one, so why don’t we all just get together and enjoy that, instead?” And we did. No shipping, or over packing the MINI, no wrapping, just a family getting together once a year. Now we do celebrate, we eat, drink and are merry… But the gift is that as a family we are together. While I type this, everyone is doing their own thing, earlier some went to the grocery, I went to walk on the beach. No gifts, no expectations, no stress. As adults, we can do this, if we were with kids, yes, it would be different… But still think about it for the adults, how bad would it be if we all decided that time, that very precious and limited commodity these days, was all we were going to give. Yes, the economy would speed off some fiscal cliff, but I hear that’s happening already because some other adults are acting like spoiled children.

Yes, my family does still exchange gifts and I still get a little stressed trying to figure out what I should buy… This year I probably failed (again) but figured I’m tired of worrying about it. Hopefully, my older brother will like the electronic doohickeys I bought, my dad might appreciate the Lego set and understand that it was time with his grandson I was giving him, not just a bunch of pieces of plastic. My mom, who loves to decorate for the holidays, will hopefully appreciate the centerpiece. Sadly, time got away from me (see yesterday’s post) so some folks aren’t getting anything until I return home, but they are spending quality time with loved ones and my little gift isn’t going to make a difference- it’s not like I bought everyone a car with a big bow on it like everyone on TV does.

So here is my Christmas wish to you- may you have a safe and wonderful holiday and hopefully end up with a gift you didn’t expect some- happy time with people you care about. Merry Christmas!

What do you mean by “hiatus?” Haven’t you been on one for a year already?

Posted on December 23, 2012 by Bruce

While it might not come to many as a surprise, since I tend to take some time between the holidaze to rethink and catch up, I will be doing that again this year. I know I have been behind in posting, and according to the Economist and actual “professionals” in the field of Webcomics (or as some like to call them “comics”) one thing that helps with creating an audience is to actually have something for them to read. Who knew? So while many have given me support in this almost 4 year labor of love, I’m taking the next week while I’m on the road to think through some things. Mostly what can I actually accomplish given the number of hours in a day and the fact that those Official Harry Potter Time-Turners they sell online don’t really work… If anyone is interested I have a box of them, caveat emptor.

I’m not whining (although it might sound like it). I’m not looking for posts of support (I have gotten those too, the other times when I post long thought out apologies). I do love creating this comic, it is something I find joy in… When the world sometimes has no other joy in it. I appreciate all the support and friends I have made. I have learned so much and look forward to learning even more in the coming years. If you had told me when I started this, that I’d still be at it after lose to four years, I’d have laughed. I’m mulling over ideas and taking a little break to plan & scheme. So, take some time yourself and enjoy the friends & family you are with. Enjoy a little time off and I’ll see you in 2013… We survived the end of the world, so as long as the “Snowpocalypse” doesn’t keep me from my drawing board- to quote Arnold “I’ll be back”

Doctor Who & Lego? My TARDIS Interior Build- a review

Posted on November 18, 2012 by Bruce

For true Lego diehards- the Doctor Who sets from “Character Building” (an arm of COBI, a Polish toy company) and therefore do not use real Lego bricks.  I knew that going in, but they are Doctor Who which is really what this should be all about.  When visiting the warehouse for WHONA in Indianapolis, I decided to pick myself up a present (a birthday present, my precious) SO after looking at a number of “Lego” Doctor Who kits, I went for the TARDIS Interior which came with mini figs of the 11th Doctor, Amy Pond, Rory Williams, & River Song.  Previously, I had purchased online a TARDIS set with the 11th Doctor & Amy, and the complete set of all the Doctors.  The TARDIS was a simple build and very small so it really didn’t give me a feel for what building with CB bricks was like.  This mega-set did, and I now understand the double entendre in the name (building with these bricks was, at times, “character building”).

The set itself is the interior of the 11th Doctor’s TARDIS which has a slightly steampunky feel to it.  Unlike the TARDIS from Christopher Eccleston & David Tennant which was more of a natural construction, the pillars looking like they might be coral.  This TARDIS is “shiny.”  All in all it is a nice set when it is finished… but the building process and instructions that’s another story.

The Build

CB instructions are interesting in that they remove the color from any previous steps this is a help, but also a hinderance in construction.  It helps because you know exactly which pieces are going where.  When building the Sopwith Camel it sometimes became a game of “Where’s Waldo” to figure out where a piece went.  By having the bricks you use for a step the only bricks in color, it makes it simple.  The problem is when you need to check your construction as you move along in the process.  In Lego you just look over the illustration and you can see all the pieces and how they fit.  In CB I found the need to go back to the page in which I constructed certain parts to make sure it was correct.  This back & forth did become a bit annoying.  As the build continued I noticed a few things about the instructions, they seem to have missed a few key things that would have helped with the rigidity of the structure.  In Lego you start building things and you overlap bricks creating a rigid structure, these directions ended up with larger pieces that were barely holding together.  Adding one more connection would add stability.  There is still a portion of the TARDIS wall that if I try to reattach it the entire wall breaks!  I think the plan could have used someone who had been through the Lego Master Building Academy.

The actual bricks, seemed to feel different, I’m guessing they are lighter and therefore they felt flimsy… from what I could tell they weren’t, but I had the impression that they just seemed a little subpar.  CB also created a number of specialty bricks for this build to create the angles needed for the interior.  Unfortunately I discovered that unlike Lego bricks these bricks didn’t connect as well and while I am used to putting two bricks together in Lego and knowing that it will take some effort to separate them, in some places these disconnected effortlessly, overall this lead to a less than satisfactory building experience.  Again back to one specific portion which I had to rebuild numerous times because every time I tried to attach it,the wall crumbled once the slightest pressure was put on it.

While there is always a bit of overage in any kit I was a little distraught when I got to one instruction and couldn’t find the pieces I needed!  This was not my typical “teeny tiny” piece hiding in a pile.  I was looking for two large grey planks.  They just never made it in the box.  What did make it were the exact same sized clear planks that fortunately were extra pieces.   These were a middle portion of a layer being used as the floor so they were hidden from sight, but that still made me concerned, and I wasted time going over and over the instructions to see if I had read something wrong.

Final Thoughts

I am happy with the final result, just a little leery about moving it anywhere.  Will I buy any more sets?  Probably not, right now I’m torn between two different Lego sets, but feel I should probably finish the Lego Master Builder Academy before moving on to any other builds.  I did end up picking up some Doctor Who mini figs from series 1 & 2.  The CB mini figs are not the generic Lego design which is neat, but also makes it impossible to put them in a Lego build without having them stick out like a sore thumb,  Then again having an army of Daleks and Cybermen is cool.

Gaming Geekiness- “Oh no, not again.”

Posted on November 3, 2012 by Bruce

So geeks & games…

Today I tried out a demo of Fantasy Flight’s X-Wing miniature game.  This was after purchasing a copy of the game for my brother in August, and a number of expansion packs.  I decided I should try it out.  So here’s a first dog fight review of X-Wing.

Starting out, I’m a Star Wars fan… old skool Star Wars. Episode 4, 5, & 6 before they got “fixed.”  I grew up with Star Wars, my brother & I used to beat each other senseless with broomstick light sabers.  So I decided I would try this game out after avoiding it for a while.

I started out at my local game store (Saltire Games) and watched a game finish out.  A squadron of Y-wing fighters against a squadron of TIE fighter lead by Darth Vader.  It was little confusing at first since there are a number of elements at play each turn. So here are the basics from one game:

  • Pick your side and ships-  Ships gain special abilities due to who is piloting them and added things like droids.  Each of these things are worth points.  In my case I chose Biggs Darklighter and R2-D2 for one X-Wing and a Rookie pilot for another X-Wing -50 points.  I was going against a squadron of three TIE fighters also worth 50 points.
  • Each ship has a movement wheel where you decide how fast your ship will travel and what direction it will go.  These are unique for the type of ship. You begin by setting the dial and then placing it face down so your opponent cannot see what you are going to do.
  • Movement is resolved along with actions- this could be locking on a specific target, or having your pilot focus or evading.  Each movement is performed using a guide which fits between two bumps on the front & back of the figure’s base, making it really simple to move a piece correctly without needing a game board.
  • Combat is resolved by the use of eight sided dice with unique markings.  Red dice are used for attack, green for defense.
  • When damage is taken if your ship has shields you would remove a shield token, if you don’t you take a damage card.
  • When you have the same number of damage cards as the ships structure the ship is destroyed. (ka-boom!)
  • Games have specific victory conditions which could be a time limit or until all ships are destroyed.  We played until the complete destruction of our enemies.

So those are basics, with some help I was able to win (Biggs has the ability to have all enemy fire focused on him, R2 repairs shields so basically if you can’t take this combination out in one combat phase they just keep regenerating).  I have skipped some game elements to keep this short.  I figure I will need to try out an Imperial squadron next.

The system is very player friendly and rather simple even if at first glance it looks complicated.  Each ship has certain strategies and tactics that help (ion cannons on a Y-wing).  I followed the suggestion of focusing fire on one ship and taking the squadron down one ship at a time.

The game is very true to the Star Wars universe, and I was especially happy that at this moment they are sticking to the original trilogy with a Millennium Falcon, Slave 1, A-Wing and TIE Interceptor expansions coming out before the holidaze.  It is not a collectible game… so if you buy three X-wing expansion packs, you end up with three copies of all the materials needed.  Unlike other games where you need to keep buying in hope that you get a super exclusive piece, the only unique pilot is Luke Skywalker who comes in the Starter Set.  The miniatures are painted and look really good.  They went back and looked that the original models used in the film when creating the pieces, this detail makes me happy.  Right now for the Star Wars universe this is a great game and I can’t wait to play it again.  On a sidenote: as a Star Trek fan, I haven’t seen anything to beat FASA’s Star Trek: Starship Tactical Combat Simulator, long out of print, but that is a story for another day.

Lego Master Builder Academy Kit 1 – “I Built This”

Posted on October 28, 2012 by Bruce

Interestingly enough I decided to try out the “Master Builder Academy” program from Lego.  This because I started sliding down the slippery slope of building with Lego after an over 30 year absence.  I made this decision because I work at a school and bought something that I figure will end up in my classroom, with my students.  The first kit deals with building spacecraft.  It goes into many techniques on building and includes sections highlighting designers.  So the actual manuals are a valuable resource.  I use the same excuse about watching cartoons. You build three projects and then end up getting pushed (as an adult) back into the creativity of youth when you are asked to use what you have learned and build your own design.  As a kid, this would have been easy- slap a few pieces together and there it is… as an adult all those little nagging doubts surface and I realized how much my own spontaneous creativity has been squashed.  I say this as I guy who draws… but pushing outside that safety zone in Lego.  So while I have thrown this out to the MBA Lego community, I will also throw it out to you- My  Own Creation-  I consider it a draft or in engineering terms I believe it would be a “prototype.”  I called it a MINI Warp Shuttle, although I’m starting to like the word “sled” instead of shuttle.

May you live in interesting times…

Posted on August 6, 2012 by Bruce

This morning I stayed up for something wonderful, I was one of those goofy geeks who didn’t go to sleep until he knew the fate of the Curiosity rover. I had been hyping the landing on my school’s Facebook page and getting pretty excited about the whole thing and the “Seven Minutes of Terror.”  If you don’t know (since my local newspaper seems to think the Colt’s kicker’s decorating tips is more important than landing a robot on another planet)- NASA sent another robot to Mars to take a look around. Curiosity is about the length of a Mini Cooper and had a very complex series of things that needed to happen so it could land safely.  The issue to me was FTL communication (the Ansible, if you read Orson Scott Card) hasn’t been invented or stolen from aliens yet, so it takes around 14 minutes to talk between Earth and Mars.  While watching the pregame and then the whole (as someone put it) nerdspeak, it seemed like they were setting us up for failure. They kept mentioning how difficult it was and how without communication we wouldn’t know what was happening.  Luckily, the stars were in alignment, careful planning worked out and amazingly there was a happy ending.  While many people stood out (mohawk guy) it was a great demonstration of geeks in action and the power of getting enough dreamers in one room.  Following the ustream broadcast (I have 300 channels and NASA TV isn’t one of them?!?! How did this happen?) along with Facebook & Twitter it seemed like almost everyone was either sleeping or nervously following what was going on.  Some tweets more serious than others:

  • It would cost $60 billion to start a human Mars colony. Our wars in Iraq, Afghanistan & Pakistan have cost over $3.4 trillion. @dresdencodak
  • Once more, without the clear dust cover. Here’s the “fisheye” pic from my rear Hazcam http://twitpic.com/ag43lt @MarsCuriosity
  • Internet, you win this round. I’ll be back later, but thanks so much. Now going to celebrate with all my friends and team! @tweetsoutloud
  • There is a lot of really bad hair at NASA. @dbwildo
  • NBC paid $1.3 Billion for Olympics rights. Queen’s diamond jubilee cost £3 Billion. Curiosity cost $2.5 Billion. RT@scottmcloud
  • “Oh, you won a gold medal for running 100 meters? We just landed a car on Mars.” Nerds:1 Jocks:0 RT@christopheeerrr
  • Whoa. Whoa. Did that guy just say “go to Europa?” I distinctly remember being told in 2010 to “attempt no landings there.” @pvponline
  • I have never been happier for a room full of strangers as I am for these JPL engineers. @davekellett
  • I’m safely on the surface of Mars. GALE CRATER I AM IN YOU!!! @MarsCuriosity
  • Man! Real time CG graphics! To think: we went to the Moon with the computing power of an abacus rubbed vigorously on a shag carpet… @AH_AdamHughes
  •  It does seem weird that Earth is sending a flying saucer to Mars. RT@AH_AdamHughes

Technology (and geekdom) brought this event to life.  As someone pondered- What would be possible if NASA could get $30 billion through Kickstarter?  All I kept thinking about was being a kid in Boy Scouts and visiting JPL right after Viking landed.  The great thing about kids is their sense of wonder & imagination, the sad thing about kids is their lack of understanding when it comes to making something happen.  I thought when my dad was trying to explain how difficult it was to get a probe to Mars, “It must not have been that hard- launch a rocket, have it land.” I didn’t have the experience of watching failed launches or memories of Apollo 1 or even Apollo 13.  That perspective is important, but needs to be combined with youthful optimism.  Last night I saw a room full of little kids who had grown up but never lost the spark. I am shocked to say that some times I am proud to be an inhabitant of the Earth, and sometimes interesting times are amazing.

Movies: Story or Spectacle?

Posted on August 5, 2012 by Bruce

While I proclaim myself a geek and I do love movies, I tend not to have the time to go out and see anything in the theater.  Yesterday when Sue was heading out for a “Girl’s Night Out” I decided to go and see “The Dark Knight Rises” the final film in Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy.  This is not a spoiler filled review.  It was a good film.  In comic book land it took elements of “No Man’s Land” and “Knight Fall” included some nice twists and turns that having read nothing about it beforehand made for a good story.  Yes, I had to suspend belief (that’s what you do in movies) to ignore some holes in the plot, but I would see it again.  As Ty Templeton said Anne Hathaway is the “Best Catwoman Ever”

My movie viewing habit comes from growing up in Los Angeles.  I have been trained to show up to the theater in time to wait in the queue for tickets, then wait in the line to get in, then wait in the line for popcorn.  You rarely went alone because then you wouldn’t get a good seat.  One person got the seats while the other got popcorn, Red Vines, & a drink.  So I tend to show up early.  In the case of the Dark Knight it was only 30 minutes.  So I got to watch the pre-game commercials.  Then the trailers. they told me twice to silence my cell phone.  Then something I hadn’t seen happened. A commercial for the importance of seeing movies in a Movie Theater.

The screen showed all the monumental scenes of explosions, special effects, and action and slowly shrank.  It shrank to the size of a TV, then some tagline about seeing movies in a theater where you get everything.  Even with 3D and IMAX and IMAX 3D along with the cost I wondered what I actually received for my theater going experience. I did not see the film with any bells or whistles, just a regular multiplex.  I figured even with the matinee/twilight ticket and the $12.00 for a medium popcorn and medium drink I could have gone out for a nice dinner.  So what does the theater experience give you?  There were maybe 30 people in the theater so it wasn’t sharing the moment with the crowd.  If anything the guy three seats away checking his silent cell phone during the film was annoying.  That combined with the people who decided to be silent during the trailers by start talking during the opening credits were things to keep me at home.  So why see a film at a regular theater?

As I think back on “The Dark Knight Rises” I have to think about what made seeing this in a theater better.  There were big special effects scenes with explosions, but what brought me to the film was the story.  I wanted to know how Christopher Nolan was going to end his take on Batman.  I didn’t need a big screen.  I could have read the comic book adaptation & been just as happy, I just would have missed some nice performances.

The little commercial about seeing movies in theaters tells me that I’m not the only one thinking this way.  I know I might have been more impressed if I had spent more money and seen it in IMAX or 3D.  I remember growing up and seeing “Indiana Jones & the Temple of Doom” for the first time.  I really wasn’t impressed.  I then was dragged to see it again in a theater that had it in THX.  “Wow!” It didn’t make the story any better, but it made the experience better.  I guess to me the story is important, a story that can be told on any size screen.  After my grandmother took me to a movie I remember asking her what she thought of it, “It was loud” was her reply.  At the time I thought “The Return of the Jedi” was epic…  come to think of it maybe I am just getting old.

Geekiness- Level Up!

Posted on June 5, 2012 by Bruce
"Never beam down in a red shirt" words to live by... or not.

So while I’m dealing with stuff & trying to keep the comic updated I have gotten some geeky goodness in the mail.  In November I decided to put an order into ANOVOS who had some fantastic Star Trek uniform shirts at ComicCon along with Battle Star Galactica stuff.  I ordered my “Expendable Tie” and then decided to go ahead and get a real red shirt.  It arrived today… Sue isn’t that happy with it, but then again we have an understanding that we don’t question each others purchases when it comes to our goofy hobbies.  So I now am the proud owner of an “Ensign Ricky” and as long as Sue doesn’t have to be seen with me while wearing it everything is fine.  Yes, it is silly but I’m old enough to do something silly every once in while…

Kickstarter… Geek Nirvana, Teaching Opportunity?

Posted on April 26, 2012 by Bruce

I know I’ve spoken about Kickstarter before, as a geek, it is a really cool way to support other geeks. Kickstarter is a way that “crowdsourcing” is being used to fund various projects that might otherwise not see the light of day. Many projects have educational value or can be used as demonstration pieces, especially in a STEM environment where engineering & design are an important part of the curriculum. Since each funding level has different rewards I have attempted to pick levels of funding that provided resources for my classroom. Since I started funding projects over a year ago I decided I would share a list of the projects I have supported for use in my classroom & school.  Some I’m still waiting on pieces arriving, but you need to give geeks time to create (you know, like this comic strip).  Check out some of these and some local projects.

Graphic Novel Library:

Films/Video:

Video Games:

Engineering & Science:

All work & no play makes Jack a dull boy… so here are some projects I’ve funded just because I thought they were cool:

*not successfully funded, yet. But as of this post there’s still time.

Who are you and what have you done with my comic?

Posted on April 21, 2012 by Bruce

I know it has been a while since a new comic has graced this site… Life sadly has gotten in the way, but that will soon change (I know- “Promises, Promises”). Spring Break, C2E2, & taxes while all fun, they also keeping me away from creating anything.  Combine that with a massive writer’s block, work, and needing to figure a few things out.  I have strips plotted out, so I will be sitting at the drafting table and computer to get the scribbling done and the comics posted.

That all said I thought I would share this cool PSA about reading while you wait to read my comic.  It is sad that as a teacher I have many students who are masters at feigning reading.  I try to get good books in their hands, but reading just isn’t a priority, it never was from the earliest of ages.  I know I wasn’t a voracious reader growing up, or at least I don’t remember reading much beyond comics until I was in middle school. All I can say is If you have kids I hope you are reading to them every night, there is no excuse. The students in my classroom who are really successful are always reading.